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Mumbai — The prospects of India’s entertainment and business capital enjoying a vibrant nightlife, with eateries and bars remaining open round-the-clock in special entertainment zones, appear iffy with political and legal hurdles in the way.
While Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had last month readily agreed to the proposal by Aditya, son of Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, and president of the party’s youth wing, to allow such establishments to stay open all night, there are roadblocks on the way.
The Bombay High Court, which has taken up a public interest litigation concerning the impact of all-night bars and restaurants on women’s safety, has sought several clarifications from the government.
Similarly, sections of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including many legislators, are urging Fadnavis not to go ahead with the proposal. Niranjan Shetty, spokesperson of the BJP — who is also the chairman of the municipal corporation committee of the Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association (AHAR) — told Khaleej Times on Friday that the chief minister was in favour of the proposal. “We (the BJP) have no issues with the proposals and are in favour of it. Mumbai is an international city and this is a step in the right direction.”
According to Shetty, the proposal has to be cleared by the state legislature before it is implemented. He clarified that the rules should be uniform and all legitimate establishments — catering to both the affluent and ordinary citizens — should be allowed to remain open all night.
Aditya has been pushing the proposal for quite some time and had also met Fadnavis, who had agreed to the move. Last month Mumbai’s police commissioner, Rakesh Maria, approved the proposal allowing restaurants and pubs to remain all night, but only in non-residential localities. The hotels and restaurant trade was hopeful that it would be smooth sailing after the police clearance. But many residents associations in south Mumbai areas such as Colaba have approached legislators and are objecting to the move on the ground that it would endanger women’s safety and also generate unnecessary noise all night. Some BJP legislators have approached Fadnavis, urging him not to allow the setting up of all-night entertainment zones.
Mumbai had a thriving night life till a few years ago, when hundreds of dance bars operated across the metropolis. However, after some incidents involving youth from semi-urban and rural areas — who would splurge money at these places, wiping out their family savings — several legislators urged the state government to shut down the bars.
The state government imposed a ban on dance bars about 10 years ago and even though the Bombay high court and even the supreme court ruled against the blanket ban, the police have not been giving licences.
nithin@khaleejtimes.com
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